Create Your Own Fairy Story

“Once when no-one was looking...” 

As my childhood was very difficult, sometimes my past creeps into my present.

When this happens, I can slide into a downward mood spiral, which affects my mental well-being. At such times, a tool I use to shift my energy is to create my very own fairy story, with a different ending. This helps remind me that despite how bleak things might seem, there can always be a new beginning and an alternative way forward. 

If you have similar experiences, this can be a good exercise to raise your spirits, by fantasising a different life and inventing your own fairy tale. There are no limits on your imagination. Just let your vision go where it will. Write it down. Be playful and childlike. Everyone loves a fairy story. 

This is one that I wrote when I was tumbling fast into a black hole:

Once upon a time there was a scared, fragile young girl who hid from the world in a tiny cupboard under the stairs. This was her special place of safety from the adults living in this house, who harmed her. She clutched her favourite fairy book close to her chest to remind herself of what could have been, in another world.

Then something rather magical happened. Once when no-one was looking, our young heroine, named Eva, decided she’d had enough of this hiding business. Maybe she could experiment just for one day  and try not being scared. She made herself a cheese and pickle sandwich.

She opened the door and just walked out. On her own. Yes. She just walked out. Brave as you can be. As she stepped outside of the house, our Eva grew bigger, just like Alice in Wonderland.

Miraculously, she became a young woman completely transformed. Ruby red, bob-cut hair, with a jewel studded bandana, and a large majestic white dove’s feather perched ceremoniously in the folds. Long, glittering, cherry flapper dress skimmed her trim curvy figure.

She swung her hips with pride and dignity. Confident in her own skin. Her graceful movements whispering: ‘This is a woman of consequence. A powerful woman. Don’t mess with her.’ This was the time of Charleston, jazz and rhythm, the swinging twenties.

A cab dropped her at the front of the Regal nightclub. As she stepped out, Ralph, the doorman, leapt forward to greet her: “Going to be a great show tonight. The house feels warm Miss Eva. All ready and waiting to be charmed by your silky voice. You’re something special.” He bowed in admiration.

 He said something similar to her every night, but she never tired of hearing his praise. Ralph had been looking out for her ever since she’d started singing at the club, some eight years ago.

She remembered that first appearance, when she’d stepped out onto the stage, in her shimmering turquoise dress, with her accompanying hair band and feather of course, which had now become her trademark.

You wouldn’t catch a glimpse of Miss Eva in public without that feather reaching skywards. The next day, critic’s headlines declared: “The Regal’s Shining Light. Ms Eva Roshan. A rare talent emerges.”

Now, eight years on, as Sid Lawrence’s band played her intro and Harry’s jubilant saxophone willed her to let rip with her sultry velvet-toned voice, she sang like a bird. Oh my, how she sang.

The spotlight made her glisten like an angel with that feather aloft. The audience hushed immediately she started those first bars, couldn’t hear a pin drop - a most unusual occurrence at the Regal. She held them mesmerised with her talent, putty in their hands.

When she glided amongst them, during a later song, they clamoured to touch her, as if hoping that some of her magic might rub off on them. Such was her magnetism,

‘Over here Miss Eva’ the guys shouted. Everyone wanting a piece of her.

But she was her own person. Went where she pleased. Hovered in their direction for a moment, then shimmied away leaving a trail of evocative scent in her wake.

All of this had happened once, when no-one was looking, to our little Eva from the cupboard under the stairs.

My how much better I felt after writing this tale. My mood had balanced and my spirits lifted. Having fun-filled fantasy trips like this, and creating your own fairy story is therapeutic. The act of writing shifts your mood. and can have a positive effect on your mental well-being. It works for me every time.